4-4 Merrill Hl
Ladera Ranch, CA 92694

I have genuinely never hated a place more in my life. My high school experience here has been nothing short of horrible, and I cannot wait to leave. Although the teachers are generally nice people, most are not particularly effective at teaching. I often felt like I had to teach myself, and many lessons lacked clarity and structure. However, my biggest issue was not with the teachers, but with the rest of the staff. Aside from teachers, most of the staff members I interacted with were rude, unhelpful, and gave off the impression that they did not want to be there. Getting any effective help requires you to go far out of your way to advocate for yourself because assistance was rarely offered voluntarily.To make matters worse, the school has implemented new policies that only make the experience harder. These changes are unnecessary and seem to serve no real purpose other than to make attending school more difficult and frustrating. A new grading system, which my math class piloted this year, also set many students back. Instead of supporting learning, it confused students and made it harder to succeed. I felt that it directly impacted my understanding of the material and hurt overall performance in the class.Socially, the environment is just as disappointing. The student body is largely made up of wealthy, entitled individuals, many of whom are openly discriminatory. The administration does little to address or combat this behavior. As a student of color in a predominantly white school, I never felt truly supported. There were very few resources available for minority students, and at times, the school’s actions made things worse. For example, they shut down the Black Student Union (BSU) claiming it was “excluding other students.” Although the club eventually reopened, it now includes mostly non-Black members. While I don’t necessarily have a problem with that, it is strange that this was only an issue for the BSU, while other clubs do not seem to face the same scrutiny or restrictions.I could honestly go on and on about my negative experiences here. From the administration’s failure to support students to the toxic social environment, my time at this school has been unpleasant and exhausting. I would not recommend sending your children here, especially if they are minorities. There are better, more inclusive schools out there where students can thrive without feeling isolated, unsupported, or undervalued.

Although the school receives high test scores, the parents over involvement negatively impacts the students. The competitive, insecure, status-obsessed mothers make it impossible for their children to discover their own identity and make their own friends, because they are in the classroom cherry-picking who their friends will be, while excluding others. This middle school behavior among adults has led to rule bending at the school, with certain kids whose parents are over involved being allowed to roam the hallways freely looking for their mommies. And let's not forget that only mommies who put in extra volunteerism time will have their child picked for coveted roles in school plays. I have chosen to leave and have found greener pastures elsewhere.

This school is phenomenal. The kids here are nice and are usually on task. The teachers here are AMAZING. They are friendly, funny, and are always willing to help.